JOINT SUBLUXATION & ADJUSTMENT (MANIPULATION)
Whether you just started seeing a chiropractor or are a long-time patient, you've probably heard the term "subluxation." Your chiropractor may have also used the terms vertebral subluxation complex, spinal joint dysfunction or fixation. Generally speaking, these terms are interchangeable. However, subluxation has specific qualities to chiropractors and is a word with historical significance.
By
definition, subluxation describes a spinal joint (a joint between two moves
vertebrae) or peripheral joint (a joint other than the vertebral joints,
like one in your foot or wrist) that is relatively immobile (has restricted
motion) or abnormally positioned. An analogy may be as follows: If you have
a steering wheel that is stiff and that does not turn all the way, it is
"subluxated" and can lead to an accident. The wheel needs to be oiled so
that it is loose and to its full capacity, helping you to steer properly.
There are many professions around the world today that use spinal manipulation
in the treatment of patients. But chiropractic is the only profession in
which manipulation, known as adjustment to chiropractors, serves as the
main focus of care and education.
That said, there is a great deal of controversy among chiropractors today about whether to use the word manipulation or adjustment to describe what is, in essence, spinal or peripheral joint manipulation. Many chiropractors prefer the word adjustment, which has historical, anatomical, scientific and philosophical relevance.
They believe that it differentiates chiropractors from other health-care providers utilizing spinal manipulation, whereas manipulation is a term more widely accepted by allopathic medicine. So what is an adjustment? The chiropractic adjustment involves the utilization of specific, short-lever, high-velocity and controlled forceful thrusts by hand or instrument (such as an activator tool) that are directed at subluxations. The goal of this corrective pressure is to return joints to their proper position, remove subluxations and restore health to the nervous system.